Constellation Brands, Inc. Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

9 Months Ended

Nov. 30, 2017

FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS:

Authoritative guidance establishes a framework for measuring fair value and requires disclosures about fair value measurements for financial instruments. This guidance emphasizes that fair value is a market-based measurement, not an entity-specific measurement, and states that a fair value measurement should be determined based on assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability. It establishes a hierarchy for inputs used in measuring fair value that maximizes the use of observable inputs and minimizes the use of unobservable inputs by requiring that the most observable inputs be used when available. The hierarchy includes three levels:


•	Level 1 inputs are quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities;


•	Level 2 inputs include data points that are observable such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets, quoted prices for identical assets or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, and inputs (other than quoted prices) such as interest rates and yield curves that are observable for the asset and liability, either directly or indirectly; and


•	Level 3 inputs are unobservable data points for the asset or liability, and include situations where there is little, if any, market activity for the asset or liability.

Fair value methodology and assumptions –

The following methods and assumptions are used to estimate the fair value for each class of our financial instruments:

Foreign currency and commodity derivative contracts: Our foreign currency contracts consist of foreign currency forward and option contracts and our commodity derivative contracts consist of swap contracts. The fair value is estimated using market-based inputs, obtained from independent pricing services, into valuation models. These valuation models require various inputs, including contractual terms, market foreign exchange prices, market commodity prices, interest-rate yield curves and currency volatilities, as applicable (Level 2 fair value measurement).

Interest rate swap contracts: The fair value is estimated based on quoted market prices from respective counterparties. Quotes are corroborated by using discounted cash flow calculations based upon forward interest-rate yield curves, which are obtained from independent pricing services (Level 2 fair value measurement).

Equity securities, Trading (with the intent of holding more than one year): In November 2017, we acquired (i) a 9.9% investment in Ontario, Canada-based Canopy Growth Corporation, a public company and leading provider of medicinal cannabis products (the “Canopy Investment”), and (ii) warrants which give us the option to purchase an additional ownership interest in Canopy Growth Corporation (the “Canopy Warrants”) for C$245.0 million, or $191.3 million. The Canopy Warrants expire in May 2020. For the nine months and three months ended November 30, 2017, we recognized an unrealized gain of $216.8 million from the changes in fair value of the Canopy Investment and the Canopy Warrants, which is included in income from unconsolidated investments. The fair value of the Canopy Investment is calculated by using the closing market price of the underlying equity security (Level 1 fair value measurement). The fair value of the Canopy Warrants is estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model (Level 2 fair value measurement). The assumptions used to estimate the fair value of the Canopy Warrants as of November 30, 2017, are as follows:



Expected life⁽¹⁾	2.4 years
Expected volatility ⁽²⁾	66.7	%
Risk-free interest rate ⁽³⁾	1.5	%
Expected dividend yield ⁽⁴⁾	0.0	%


⁽¹⁾	Based on the expiration date of the warrants.


⁽²⁾	Based on historical volatility levels of the underlying equity security.


⁽³⁾	Based on the implied yield currently available on Canadian Treasury zero coupon issues with a remaining term equal to the expected life.


⁽⁴⁾	Based on historical dividend levels.

Debt securities, Available-for-sale (“AFS”): The fair value is estimated by discounting cash flows using market-based inputs (Level 3 fair value measurement).

Short-term borrowings: The revolving credit facility under our senior credit facility is a variable interest rate bearing note which includes a fixed margin which is adjustable based upon our debt ratio (as defined in our senior credit facility). Its fair value is estimated by discounting cash flows using LIBOR plus a margin reflecting current market conditions obtained from participating member financial institutions (Level 2 fair value measurement). The remaining instruments, including our commercial paper and accounts receivable securitization facilities, are variable interest rate bearing notes for which the carrying value approximates the fair value.

Long-term debt: The term loans under our senior credit facility are variable interest rate bearing notes which include a fixed margin which is adjustable based upon our debt ratio. The fair value of the term loans is estimated by discounting cash flows using LIBOR plus a margin reflecting current market conditions obtained from participating member financial institutions (Level 2 fair value measurement). The fair value of the remaining long-term debt, which is primarily fixed interest rate, is estimated by discounting cash flows using interest rates currently available for debt with similar terms and maturities (Level 2 fair value measurement).

The carrying amounts of certain of our financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable and short-term borrowings, approximate fair value as of November 30, 2017, and February 28, 2017, due to the relatively short maturity of these instruments. As of November 30, 2017, the carrying amount of long-term debt, including the current portion, was $8,137.4 million, compared with an estimated fair value of $8,416.3 million. As of February 28, 2017, the carrying amount of long-term debt, including the current portion, was $8,631.6 million, compared with an estimated fair value of $8,845.5 million.

Recurring basis measurements –

The following table presents our financial assets and liabilities measured at estimated fair value on a recurring basis:



	Fair Value Measurements Using
	Quoted Prices in Active Markets (Level 1)		Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)		Total
(in millions)
November 30, 2017
Assets:
Foreign currency contracts	$	—	$	31.0	$	—	$	31.0
Commodity derivative contracts	$	—	$	8.6	$	—	$	8.6
Equity securities, Trading	$	269.8	$	138.3	$	—	$	408.1
Debt securities, AFS	$	—	$	—	$	15.4	$	15.4
Liabilities:
Foreign currency contracts	$	—	$	27.8	$	—	$	27.8
Commodity derivative contracts	$	—	$	5.8	$	—	$	5.8

February 28, 2017
Assets:
Foreign currency contracts	$	—	$	13.2	$	—	$	13.2
Commodity derivative contracts	$	—	$	5.8	$	—	$	5.8
Interest rate swap contracts	$	—	$	4.7	$	—	$	4.7
Debt securities, AFS	$	—	$	—	$	9.5	$	9.5
Liabilities:
Foreign currency contracts	$	—	$	70.4	$	—	$	70.4
Commodity derivative contracts	$	—	$	11.6	$	—	$	11.6
Interest rate swap contracts	$	—	$	0.3	$	—	$	0.3

Nonrecurring basis measurements –

The following table presents our assets and liabilities measured at estimated fair value on a nonrecurring basis for which an impairment assessment was performed for the period presented:



	Fair Value Measurements Using
	Quoted Prices in Active Markets (Level 1)		Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2)		Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)		Total Losses
(in millions)
For the Nine Months Ended November 30, 2017
Trademarks	$	—	$	—	$	136.0	$	86.8

For the first quarter of fiscal 2018, we identified certain negative trends within our Beer segment’s Ballast Point craft beer portfolio which, when combined with the recent negative craft beer industry trends, including slower growth rates and increased competition, indicated that it was more likely than not that the fair value of our indefinite lived intangible asset associated with the craft beer trademarks might be below its carrying value. These negative trends were the result of (i) a disruption in our distribution network transition plan, (ii) an unexpected decrease in sales from product innovations and (iii) a significant shift in market conditions for our craft beer portfolio, all of which resulted in a decline in net sales and depletion trends, which represent distributor shipments of our branded products to retail customers, for the first quarter of fiscal 2018 as compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2017, following consecutive quarters of significant net sales and depletion volume growth for our craft beer portfolio. Additionally, net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2018 were below our forecasted net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2018. Accordingly, we performed a quantitative assessment for impairment of the craft beer trademark asset. As a result of this assessment, the craft beer trademark asset with a carrying value of $222.8 million was written down to its estimated fair value of $136.0 million, resulting in an impairment of $86.8 million. This impairment is included in selling, general and administrative expenses.

We measured the amount of impairment by calculating the amount by which the carrying value of the trademark asset exceeded its estimated fair value. The estimated fair value was determined based on an income approach using the relief from royalty method, which assumes that, in lieu of ownership, a third party would be willing to pay a royalty in order to exploit the related benefits of the trademark asset. The cash flow projections we use to estimate the fair values of our trademarks involve several assumptions, including (i) projected revenue growth rates, (ii) estimated royalty rates, (iii) after-tax royalty savings expected from ownership of the trademarks and (iv) discount rates used to derive the estimated fair value of the trademarks.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References + Details